Visiting family in Houston, we took our son-in-law out for lunch. Alas, no St Arnold Oktoberfest at lunch, had to settle for Shiner Oktoberfest. However, my always thoughtful son-in-law bought me some of this to compare. No comparison.
In a pint glass the beer was a red amber color with a minimal to absent head.
Caramel malt aroma, floral, and a hint of spice.
Caramel malt taste, pretty malty, late piney hops, and a tinge of nutmeg.
A good robust Oktoberfest.

Poured a nice, golden oakey color with little to no white head in a tiny ring. Smells like a bakery! Molasses and honey... yum...
Very sugary scented, more towards brown sugar. Reminds me of bread pudding and jewish apple cake, but not cloyingly sweet at all. Body is thin, but now watery, feels good, smooth, not heavy. Very easily drinkable. Flavors are well blended and the taste is nice, very enjoyable.
Thanks to Kindestcut for this one!

Thanks to JNBeer for this one...my first new beer on NBS.
Pours a cloudy rust color w/ a full finger of extremely carbonated head...and disappears before I even take a whiff.
Speaking of whiffs, this one is very mild in it's scent...some sweet malt upfront w/ a floral hop in the finish. A hint of spice, cinammon and even an alcohol burn when lingering.
Taste is enjoyable enough...not my favorite style but a decent offering to say the least. The spice takes a back seat in the imbibing...a generous amount of hops to bitter it up front and a definite malty sweetness in the middle...finishes somewhat dry w. none of the alcohol my nose picked up.
Moutfeel is average and the carbonation is much less than I was expecting after the pour.
I'd enjoy a few of these if the opportunity arose...a nice beer for the day ahead.

Somewhat hazy orange/amber color with a nice white head that retains well. Smell is lightly fruity with some breadiness and there seemed to be a little DMS present. Again, taste has some fruitiness and plenty of bread, but the DMS (or something similar?) detracts from the brew for me. Taste would be much higher if not for that. Above medium levels of carbonation and slightly heavier than medium bodied. I'm thinking they could make this Oktoberfest a real winner with a couple changes in procedures, but who am I to judge? Decent brew from what seems to be a pretty darn good brewer.

Drank in honor of this beer winning a silver medal at the 2010 Great American Beer Fest.

The beer pours an orange-amber color with a white head. The aroma is a mix of toffee and caramel malt. The flavor is more of the same, with a lot of toffee as well as some brown sugar notes. I also get a little bit of grape, as well as a slight bit of hop bitterness to help balance the flavor. Very drinkable. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation.

Pours transparent orange with an off white head that dissipates quickly. Malty sweetness in both aroma and flavor. Faint hop aroma. Some bitterness and the alcohol is noticeable. Medium bodied, moderate carbonation. Drinkability is good, this makes a decent session beer and tastes ok. Compared to others in the style, I'd have to say I prefer Paulaner's or Spaten's over this, but this is good.